Apparatus for agitating water while freezing ice



Jap. 13, 1931. M. .1 -.zr-:IGLER 1,788,503

APPAM'IUS POR A-GITATING WATER WHILE FREEZING 'ICE Fired Nov. '1, 192s Patented Jan. 13, 193i Y -ArrARATus ronndlrA'rrnd weren wnitnrnnnzmdong g t f nfmnation inea noenter 7, feas."I serialiraniana.'14 i i .This invention; in its` broad'` aspect,V relates to'an improvedtmethodfand apparatus for freezing water' into ice and particularly relates to a method Vandapparatus for producingan ebnllition ofthe'waiterV while itis being cooledvand while it is freezing'so as to produce cl'earicelf"` 'f Heretofore inffreezingice for commercial purposes it has been customary todischarge' air into the water tobe frozen through Vsta'T tionary metal tubes producing" thefdesiredl ebullition required torformclear ice.` `VVhen stationary metal tubes areemployed for this Y purpose they become frozen fast in the ice j 'is and a separate operation known as needling is frequently'necessary to free the tube from the ice. Alsof as the water cools and becomes more dense, quite arelatively high air pressure is necessary to produce the 2c desired ebullition or agitation to produce clear ice. Y

It is one object of this invention to produce a novel method and apparatus for commercially freezing water into ice which'em' ploys a movable or flexible tube for discharging the air into the water to be frozen, producing the desired ebullition and at the same n time preventing the` tube from becoming Y frozen in the ice, thus eliminating the neeeo Y dling and also permitting a lower air pressure to beused but producing substantially equal results to those accomplished where a stationary metal tube is employed.

Another object of the invention is to provide an improved methodand apparatus for freezing water into ice wherein the tube through which the air is discharged into the water is continually moved and gradually withdrawn from' the water as it freezes.

A further object of the invention is to provide an improved apparatus which is of v5G is had to the accompanyingdrawings for an illustrative embodiment of ythe prinventioln, Where1n=- U il,

Fig. ljis alongitudinalverticaly section through an ice lcan illustrating the apparatus and illustrating the ice during itsfformation.

' Fig. 2 isxa transverse 4 vertical fsection through the ice can shown in l.'A y

Fig. 3 is ak partial view in vvertical section taken substantially uponA` line "3-3 upon Fig. i is Va .partial view'fin 'vert-ical section of the'lower endl-"of the iiexlible conduitenfr- Ployed.` f Fig. 5 is a'partial view in elevation illustratingone' of `'the drums onfwhich the flexvvible conduit isadapted'; to beE wound@ ff Referring to the `accompany-ing drawings wherein similar reference charactersf*j des-ignate 'similar f parts throughout the invention is illustrated `as having Ibeen appliedftoa single ice can 10 which may be one/of a plural'- ity or ljiatteryv of cans disposedgwithin albrine tankll. Itis tofbe understood,-hojwever, that 5 the invention may be applied fwherev'er liquid lis tobe frozen into .asolid andthat fthe dra-wing is imerely illnstrativeyof the use to which* the anvento'nxis most "appled, namely, commercially freezinglwat'er intoyfice.y The icefcanlO and brine` tank-1l may be of any conventional ,constructionfand disposed thereover an` headers'v 12 which -in the prefera formfof constructionisa rotatable "pipe-"erheen ,heer isf-confieren; 'anyv `suitable sourcejof compressed 'airv ora vcomaoA drum- 13I is'mOuntedfhaVing an aperture 15 Vl2'. Aiiexible and' lerndilit'hl i convenient, simple and durable construction 1S faSned tothe mpple '16 and 1S Suspended therefrom intoy theA icefcan l0: This lconduit isinthe form'of arubber'hose which'preferv. ablyhas ash'ortJ section of metallic tubing :18

"thrust-into its -low'eiendfwhiichkeeps the lower 2end' ofi-the tubing.,y open Aand acts as a 1"1 'l f o ."2,

TheoperatiouisY follows: lAfter the ice cans 10j havebeen Vfilled withl water-"and posi` tioned inthe brine tank 11 the ieXible'conduits 17 are lowered into `theirrespective ice cans. The lower end of each conduit initially is about 7 or 8 inches from the bottom of the icecan andV air is disposed therethrough from the header 12, producing the necessary ebullition of the water to produce clear ice. Usually the lower end ofthe flexible conduit first tends to arrange itself near a side of the ice can and causing the air to bubble up through the water. `j'lhewater in the 'ice can.

soon begins to become frozen, freezing from the sides of the can inwardly, formingthe ice I. This freezing of the ice inwardlyVV leaves the central co-ie'of waterW to be frozen and as-the core of Water narrows around the flexible conduit it assumes approximately the shape shown. The restricting of the Vsize of the core restricts'the movement ofthe flexible conduit 17 which as'. the core becomes smallervibrates faster and faster-and moves about inb the core of water. The bottom of the core gradually freezes upwardly the flexible conduit which is lrept agitatedor moving the Ydischarging air keptv aboveit.4 lnmost instancesgitis never absolutely necessaryrmto actuallyrwithdraw the conduit 17 from the core of water but'as the coregrad.- ually freezes upwardlyithe flexible tube 17 will of itself be moved -upwardlyand when air discharging conduit 17 until they become too heavy to be lifted by the circulation of y the water then they settle to lthe bottom of the core W and are frozen in the ice.

Various Vchanges maybe made in the details of construction and -in the carryingv out of themethod within the scope of theinvention as defined' by the appended Claims Iclaim: Y f

1f "An apparatus for freezing water into ice, 'having-V. a container .imwhich the water lis adapted to be frozen, a flexible rubber co-nsurfaces capable ofcoming in contact with they ice iformed of non-metallic material, and- Airieaiis, fordischargrgfing air through said conduit into the container'. Y

fln stestiinonywhereof, have signed my name to this'speciication. v

'- Y MAXWELL, T. ZELGLER-- the complete cakeofzice. isffrozen the tube Y .will be found coiled, or restingjonrthe top of the Cake Without-having hammer-.frozen in theealre. By rotating theheader 12 during f the freezing thek various drumsfvlwill be i rotated willwind upthe slack inthe Y suspended ,tubes17 or if desired thedrums v may-be caused. to Windl upthetubes 17- graduallyif itis thought that there isany danger K kofthetubes becoming .frozen inthe ice. .As

previously explainedhowever, thisisnot necessaryordinarily as thetube takes care of itself luring the flexing and when the, com.- 'Y plete cake is frozen it will positionitselfon Y ,4 From-p L the, above Y d apparatusitjwillbe appreciatedthat no solid stationary; tribes. are employed for; discharging theV airthroughthe water Wand conse; quentlyno needling operation is necessary to free the tube vvfrom the-ice. j Furthermore,

,described mailed. and,

a `uniform cake of ice. is 'produced' Which-is perfetlylear from top t 1r=fb0ttm Wthilt .tliewhite #bloom whichis usually present J the bottom` of theca-ke where the so-called high pressure system fis employed. Also, f

itlisipossible to 'use a much lower air pressure v in improvedr method and apparatus. than most systems due to'thevfactithat thevtube 1S..v Withdrawn; fremhe Water, 4fi-lwal Off the andasfthevcore isbeingfrozenafgreater Y agitation v.takes-v place "in 4the water still t remaining to freeze. Carbonates and-- the like which may be in the` waterofthecore are keptfthsroughlyee'tatedby, the. moving 

